This sweet and spicy Mango Dressing is oil-free and vegan. Mango gives it natural sweetness while the hint of cayenne gives it a spicy kick. Drizzle on salads, fruit, steamed vegetables, or sandwiches. It’s a 5 ingredient 5-minute dressing.
If you’ve been following along with me this week you know that I’ve got a load of mangoes to work through. I’ve made a mango cucumber salad, a mango banana smoothie, and now I bring to you a sweet and spicy mango dressing.
I used this mango salad dressing with baby spinach topped with blueberries, strawberries, orange peppers, and diced avocado. It was the perfect accompaniment.
This dressing works well with fruit salads and greens. But it also pairs nicely when drizzled on steamed broccoli.
This dressing is extra special because it doesn’t have any added oil reducing the overall calories and fat.
What I like about this dressing is that it’s a combination of sweet and spicy. The creamy sweet mango cools the spice of the cayenne, while the cayenne balances out the sweetness of the mango.
While I enjoyed this dressing on my salad for lunch, I enjoyed it again at dinner on top of a bowl of steamed rice, black beans, and vegetables.
Wherever you need a little extra flavor, this dressing steps in to do the job.
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Why This Recipe Works
- Sweet and Spicy
- Natural Ingredients
- Oil-Free
- Low calorie
- Gluten-Free
- Vegan and Dairy-Free
- 5 ingredients
- 5 minutes
- Pairs well with salads, steamed veggies, and more!
Ingredients and Notes
Mango-Fresh or frozen cut into small chunks.
Lime Juice-It’s best if you use fresh. You’ll need the juice of about 1 lime.
Vegetable Stock or Water-Instead of olive oil to create a liquid dressing, vegetable stock or water is used to thin it out.
Salt and Cayenne-A touch of salt and cayenne pepper balance the flavors together.
Instructions: Spicy Mango Dressing
Step 1: Peel and slice a mango. Squeeze the juice of one lime.
Step 2: Add 1 cup of cubed mango, juice of lime, cayenne, salt, and water or vegetable stock in the food processor. Process until all chunks of mango have been combined and you reach a smooth consistency.
Expert Tips
- Use fresh mango not frozen
- Be sure the mango is ripe before peeling and dicing
- Use one cup of chopped mango
- Add more or less cayenne depending on your spice preference. Cayenne is very strong so a little goes a long way.
- If you like extra spice add some red pepper flakes.
- Add some herbs for added flavor. I suggest mint or basil
- Use a food processor to blend your dressing. It is the easiest tool to use, as a blender sometimes needs more liquid to get the blades to completely liquify and combine ingredients.
Recipe FAQS
Step 1: A mango will have a pointy end and a flat end. Put the mango’s flat end down on your cutting board.
Step 2: Slice mango along all four sides moving your knife slightly away if you hit the pit. You’ll have two large pieces and two smaller pieces.
Step 3: Cut the fleshy halves of the mango diagonally along the flesh. Don’t cut all the way through to the skin. Then cut the other direction to create a cross pattern that creates cubes.
Step 4: Pop the mango flesh so that the squares pop out. Trim the squares off the skin. Continue the same steps for the other pieces of the mango.
The best time to enjoy mangos is May through September. However, June and July are the peak season. While you can buy imported mangos throughout the year, they are less expensive during the time they are in season, and also taste the best during the hot summer months as well.
The United States imports most of the mangos you find in the grocery store. These likely come from Mexcio. However, a limited supply of mangos are grown in parts of the United States including Florida, California, and Hawaii. India, is the largest grower of mangos, and also consume the most mangos of any other country.
Variations and Substitutions
No Vegetable Stock-Use water as a substitute. Vegetable stock gives a bit more flavor and has added salt. If you use water you may choose to add a touch more salt.
Additional Sweetness-Mangos are already sweet, however, if you want to add more sweetness, add a tablespoon of maple syrup or honey.
No Lime Juice-Use lemon juice if you don’t have a lime. I prefer the taste of lime juice with mango. Use fresh lime or lemon juice whenever possible.
Don’t Like It Spicy-Leave out the cayenne and add fresh ground black pepper, or leave pepper out completely.
Like Extra Spice-Add some red pepper flakes for added spice.
More Herbs-If you like the addition of herbs you can add a few mint or basil leaves for added flavor. Mint is cooling, and basil is lemony and peppery.
How to Serve
This dressing pairs nicely with a variety of different types of salads, like this summer berry salad, but it also pairs well with a kale salad with cranberries.
However, this also makes an excellent marinade, or topping for buddha bowls, and steamed vegetables.
How to Store and Keep
Store in an airtight container with a lid in the refrigerator. I like to use a small mason jar.
This dressing will keep for up to 7 days. I label the mason jar with the date so I don’t forget how long it’s been in the refrigerator.
More Salad Dressing Recipes!
Recipe
Mango Dressing
Equipment
Instructions
- Peel and slice mango. Squeeze the juice of one lime.
- Combine 1 cup of cubed mango, juice of lime, cayenne, salt and water or vegetable stock in the food processor. Process until all chunks of mango have been combined and you reach a smooth consistency. Enjoy!
Video
Notes
- Use fresh mango not frozen
- Be sure the mango is ripe before peeling and dicing
- Use one cup of chopped mango
- Add more or less cayenne depending on your spice preference. Cayenne is very strong so a little goes a long way.
- If you like extra spice add some red pepper flakes.
- Add some herbs for added flavor. I suggest mint or basil
- Use a food processor to blend your dressing. It is the easiest tool to use, as a blender sometimes needs more liquid to get the blades to completely liquefy and combine ingredients.
- The dressing keeps for up to 7 days in the refrigerator in an airtight container.
Nart at Cooking with Nart
I made this and it was so refreshing! Perfect for when I want a light dinner!
Julia
This mango dressing was fabulous! Love how it’s sweet and spicy at the same time. This will be a summer hit on our table!
Biana
This dressing looks amazing! Perfect for all the summer salads I will be making, thank you for sharing this recipe!
Jamie
I love how much mango flavor comes through in this dressing. Love how it’s oil free and had a bit of kick from the cayenne!
Annissa
What a gorgeous salad and dressing. Thanks for sharing so many variations. I’m going with the extra-spicy.